HEARTLAND SPICE TRADER SHIRAZ CABERNET SAUVIGNON

Heartland is the place between the vines that offers the best view of the gum trees. This is the second vintage of Spice Trader. Just as the spice traders of old, we invest our time and effort and risk all in search of those exotic flavours. We join you in the hunt for those elusive spices that fascinate our palates and capture our imaginations. Wine should be an adventure.

The Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon are fermented separately with specific parcels included for their ability to offer greater complexity and character. Time in barrel permits a softening of the wine’s structure. It also offers a complex expression of the fruit and helps the exotic notes of spice to be discovered.

2013 is a gentle year that has yielded wines of great potential. The growing period presented a minor frost event in September and a cool early flowering period. Reduced and variable fruit set in early flowering blocks impacted yields particularly for early Cabernet Sauvignon. Overall yields were 5% down on the already reduced 2012 vintage. A dry lead up to harvest led to a frantic run between early February and late March, getting all the fruit in at the right time.

This is an intense glass of juicy and delicious red. A burst of dark primary fruit hits the palate with a compote of blueberries, blackberries and currants. These powerful fruit notes can engulf the uninitiated, but waves of spice, fresh spearmint and dried herbs can be discovered by seasoned flavor explorers.

Halliday Rating 90/100

Drink By 2020

"Lines them up and knocks them down. Good value drinking to be tucked into here. It offers sweet plummy, clovey fruit with an edge of bitumen, floral highlights then giving a generally gutsy wine a bit of prettiness."